Dark Rainbow
by Rayne Ulfa
Summary: This story loosely based on "Wizard of Oz", and written by me last year. I wanted to post it here. There are 10 chapters. It's about a girl named Dorothy who is sent to a strange world by a tornado, but she isn't the same Dorothy as the original, and none of the characters are the same.
1. Chapter 1

There was a girl named Dorothy. Her hair was red and her eyes were green. Arriving at her aunt Emerald's farm, in her dainty yellow car, she wondered why the sky was so grim with clouds.

"A storm is coming," replied aunt Emerald.

Then no sooner had they left the car, a spinning tornado struck the dirt a few miles away.

"Quick! Run!" shouted Dorothy. Aunt Emerald pulled open the storm shelter door, and urged Dorothy to get in. Dorothy remembered her rucksack of food and supplies left in the car. She ran to the car, seeing the tornado still far away. Within the farm, a wandering grey wolf had been stalking the sheep but now it was looking for safety.

Dorothy had no time to worry about the wolf. She grabbed her rucksack, and ran towards the storm shelter. The door was jammed and wouldn't open. Aunt Emerald was inside screaming out for Dorothy. There wasn't anywhere to hide. The house was blown into pieces. The yellow car and a tractor took to the air, sucked against the spinning dark funnel.

Dorothy found only the rickety barn still intact. It was all she had. She fled to the barn, with the wolf running ahead of her. Soon that barn would disappear into a pile of spinning debris but she wanted some protection even if it was going to last a few seconds or less.

Dorothy ran inside the barn as it was shaking. The barn's roof blew off and then the whole barn was spinning around her and she could only lay down on the floor as things scatted over her. The world was spinning. Her head spun. She covered her ears. And all was silent.

Dorothy looked up and there was a heap of rubbish. What had been left of the barn was a pile of wood. The storm was gone, and now it felt calm, warm, and the clear blue sky had not one single cloud.

She saw the wolf moving under the debris and she panicked. She got up, and fled.

"Aunt Emerald!" she cried. Outside, expecting to see nothing but carnage and a ruined farm, there was... a forest! Exotic birds of rainbow colours flew around in circles. There were icy mountains in the distance that glistened. Hills of rich green with silver waterfalls. Flowers. Blue castles jutted from the trees like crystals.

"Where are we?" she asked the wolf, who looked just as amazed as she did. The wolf was dark grey and its eyes were golden. It looked at Dorothy with a puzzled expression, then howled.

"We're not in Kansas are we?"

It took a long time for her to process everything. If this wasn't her home, then where was this? The temperature was very humid, and there were massive winged creatures beside the birds that fluttered from tree to tree. Now the trees were not like any she'd seen before. They resembled giant redwoods and cypresses with spikes. No tree like that grew anywhere back home.

She looked at her new companion, the wolf.

"You don't know where we are either," she said. "That storm must've sent us miles from home".

It was more than that, she knew. She looked at the wolf and remembered a time when she was only 7 years old, and her aunt Emerald took her to visit an elderly Native American. The elder told Dorothy that "the wolf is your totem animal."

She spoke to the wolf, who looked at her with wise knowing eyes. "Wolf, can I call you Totem?"

The wolf's ears twitched. It's nose touched Dorothy's hand. "Be kind wolf".

She removed the rucksack from her back and opened it. Inside was food, and a bottle of water. She gave Totem a sandwich that he ate quickly. It was a weird, beautiful place, and the sounds of birds and distant great animals was unlike anything she recognised. Totem went off sniffing the grass, and his jaws closed upon something metallic, glistening and flashing in the sun. Dorothy went over to see what it was. There was a sword, attached to the lifeless body of a woman dressed in blue, silver and black. Dead. She screamed.

"You killed her!" shouted a voice all of a sudden from the trees. Behind her, standing hear a tree trunk was a strange fat man wearing blue. His hair was blue, and attached on his clothes, hair and pointed hat were small bones. Dorothy was startled, and she wanted to run, but there was a tree, or a log, stone, boulder, object in the way. More men like him materialised from behind trees. And the massive spiked redwoods glowed within. She noticed that there were windows in the tree trunks, doorways at the roots of the giant trees, and higher up on different floors. People dressed in blue were camouflaged like shadows against the forest.

"Where am I? Who are you people?" she asked.

"We're wondering who you are!" said the first man.

"Only the Witch will know that!" yelled another man from up in the tree, looking out of a high window.

This was a dream! It had to be, she thought. Dorothy ran, but fell over a stone that was carved into the shape of a human head. As she fell, a man in blue grabbed her and lifted her up onto her feet. Soon she was surrounded by dozens of strange blue-haired men wearing blue with dangling bones.

"Who are you!" They all asked her, speaking together.

"My name is Dorothy Storm!" she cried. "I want to go home!"

"Dorothy Storm!" Laughed the men in reply. "You killed our queen!"

"No I didn't!" she screamed. The wolf Totem lunged at the man holding Dorothy's arms, and with his scream, Dorothy broke free and escaped the crowd of blue men.

"Chase her!" she heard them shout. She ran and ducked into the long ferns. It was no use, the blue men found her and caught her again. Totem lunged at another man, and broken his neck. then tore at another man's throat.

"Kill that beast!" the man shouted. One of the men drew a sword and was about to take a huge swipe at Totem, when he was frozen solid. He slowly turned into a solid stone statue.

The men broke away and ran in all directions. "The witch!" they cried.

Dorothy was shaking, and her arms hurt. Totem snarled at the figure of a tall lady dressed in a snowy white gown, and snowflakes on her eyelashes. Her eyes were silver. Her hair was a blizzard shade of white blonde. Dorothy wasn't able to stare at the lady for too long as her eyes hurt at the white icy glare. The lady laughed an icy chilling laugh.

"You are lost, mortal girl!" the lady said in an unnatural voice that was an echo. "The wild beast from your world protects you, I see."

"Who are you? Who are those men? Where am I?" Dorothy asked in panic.

"I'm Helen, the Witch of the North," replied the lady. "I don't live here. I've come to look for the Witch of the East who has just died. You're in the East, where it is here".

Dorothy flinched. "Please, I just want to go home!"

Helen glowed brilliant, too bright to be seen directly.

"Your home and the beasts' home, is not here."

"I WANT TO GO HOME!" Dorothy cried, and tears fell from her green eyes.

"You have to walk home, it's a long way. Follow the golden pathway."

"What?"

The lady witch Helen handed Dorothy the sword that was found on the dead body of the woman. "Take this with you as it will protect you."

The sword was long and not too broad, with an odd metal blade that sparkled gold and silver.

Dorothy had never seen or held a sword ever in her eighteen years of life. It was something she only read about in books or seen in the movies. Her aunt Emerald often took her to the cinema and read books about knights of old. Her dear uncle Henry was away fighting in the war against the Japanese and Germans, using guns, not swords.

The lady Helen disappeared. All Dorothy had now was the sword, her rucksack of food, and her new friend Totem the wolf who had come along on this strange journey. She looked at the narrow yellow coloured dusty path weaving like a thread across the bright green grass, between the deep green ferns and huge shadowy trees. She set off that way, and never looked back to see if any of the blue men were following. Somehow, armed with a sword, and with her wolf friend, she doubted they would follow her now...


	2. Chapter 2

Dorothy and Totem walked along the golden pathway. It was a very hot, bright sun filled day in the strange land. The sunlight was bursting in a shade Dorothy had never known it to be. The sword was firm in her belt. The air was rich and dense. Pollen like yellow dust floated around the golden fields and settled high up in massive tall trees. The trees and forests all around the fields of yellow straw were prehistoric, spiking leaves, some with enormous flowers.

She touched the golden path and it was just yellow sand, with yellow pollen, yellow petals and some yellow seeds. All blown there along the twisted path. She walked on the golden path, her boots crunching and snapping. Totem the wolf did what he wanted, and he strayed off into the field of straw. He emerged later on with a dead rat in his mouth.

"You can have it, Totem," Dorothy said. She sat down and opened her rucksack. Hungry, she ate an apple and drunk water from a bottle. The straw fields and the distant spiky prehistoric looking forest sounded like crackling meat frying in a pan. The wind made the ferns and branches snap instead of rustle. Insects made noises like popping bubbles and scattering beads. There were glowing butterlies and various tiny beetles, sparkling like tiny gems.

Totem snarled. The wolf was staring at something across the straw field, fur standing up on his back. He bared his ferocious teeth.

"Totem?" Dorothy stood up. "What's the matter?"

She noticed the straw gathering together in the field, just metres away from her. It folded into a bale of hay in the shape of a golden cube.

"Is someone there?" she called out.

There wasn't anyone else in sight. The wind was too low, and the straw moved by itself. That she wasn't sure of, although the wolf was disturbed by something out there in the field.

Totem growled and moved slowly, his back lowered, his big bushy tail downwards between his legs. Dorothy saw nothing at first. Then two bright big orbs flashed in the bale of hay, and a roar that sounded like thunder. Dorothy was horrified to see that that the bale of hay transformed itself into a tall 20 foot figure with arms and legs. She couldn't move and just stared in horror.

The moving figure made of straw and hay bellowed. It had a mouth complete with shining fangs. Sensing her, it strode through the hay, squashing down the golden foliage in its steps. Dorothy broke free from her trance and ran, just running into the next golden field, listening to the thumping footsteps of the giant hay monster.

Dorothy stumbled and fell. She lifted the sword, which was so pure that it captured the sunlight and burned across the blade of precious metals. Smoke filled her nostrils. The sword's sunlit power created a fire and burnt the straw around her. She kept running, and then the bellowing became screams. Dorothy stopped and looked.

The giant straw monster was on fire. She watched it collapse into smouldering plumes of smoke and the flames licked around its form. Once out, the fire died with it, leaving just a burnt patch in the field.

The monster of hay and straw was gone. She returned to the golden path, collected her rucksack, and tore along as if there was no tomorrow. She wept. What had she just seen? It was unreal.

Dorothy was breathless, and eventually she stopped to rest. She took a swig of water from the bottle, and consumed a bicuit. There was a wild whip sound, and a smack. Just inches beside where she sat was a fierce arrow!

"Who shot at me!" she cried. Dorothy crawled into the straw and hoped to bury herself there. Thoughts raced into her mind, mainly she wanted to be home.

"Get up!" Snarled an angry man's voice.

Dorothy was startled. She wiped the tears from her eyes and stood. A strong hand pulled the metallic sword from her grasp.

"Where did you get this sword, girl?"

Dorothy looked at the man. Another strange looking one.

"It, it... it... please... help... it" lost for words, shaking from her ordeal, now quizzed by a man.

"This belonged to the witch, Princess Meng!"

Dorothy was scared. Helen the north witch, gave it to her.

The man sheathed the sword in his belt, where he carried a broadsword, daggers and arrow heads. The bow was rest against his bare back. Handsome, rugged features, eyes like deep blue stormclouds, he wore pale leather trousers and a sleevless waist jacket, covered in straw. His boots were layered in straw. He wore a headdress made of grass, and his hair was dark, waist length and braided in straw. She was struck by how frightening he was to look at, amused at how funny he would seem back home, yet also scared of him because he shot an arrow at her.

"You missed me!" she said.

"I didn't intend to shoot you, but warn you!" he said. "I'm escorting you along the gold path, because you carry the sword of the late princess Meng. You can't take that with you!"

"You can have it, I don't want it!"

"I confiscated it from you!" he reminded her, showing her the sword in his belt."It shall never be returned to you! This is the possession of princess Meng!"

He firmly grabbed her arm and they walked along the golden path. Dorothy was scared of him.

"What was that monster in the field?" she asked. "Did you see it?"

He ignored her.

By evening, the man ordered Dorothy to sit down and he prepared a small fire near the path. He demanded she remain with him or he'll definately shoot an arrow straight at her. She watched the man kill a wild hare with an arrow, and cook it over the fire. He chewed the meat, barely cooked, and he flung some of it to Totem. He finished the food, and flung some scraps at Dorothy. She couldn't eat it.

"Am I under arrest?" she asked, when the sun had set and they walked and walked. His hand so tight around her arm that it was hurting and bruised.

"Yes!" he snarled.

The man told her to lay on the grass near the golden path, and sleep there. Stars glittered, and there were two beautiful full moons. One looked like the familiar moon, and the other was a green orb that resembled an apple.

"Good night," she said quietly, knowing that the man was never going to be kind to her.

"My wishes for you to have a still sleep and not wake up until I am done sleeping!" He said.

(End of Part 2. To be continued in Part 3).


	3. Chapter 3

It was a mild sleep, under an unknown sky full of bright colourful stars. There were three moons by sunrise, fading in the sky. She was thinking after waking up "I'm definately not in Kansas."

Dorothy slept on a pile of hay and was blanketed by straw. Put there by her guard, the man who took the sword given to her by Helen. She sat up, rubbed her eyes, disappointed that she was still here in this alien world. That man was holding a rabbit on a stick above a small fire. She looked at him, and saw that he was quite handsome.

"What's your name?" she asked.

"Star Corn" he replied.

"That's a funny name!" Dorothy laughed.

The meat tasted well. Soon they were up and Star Corn held Dorothy firmly by the wrist and took her along the golden path. Totem was busily running in and out of the yellow grasses either side of the path. By the time the sun was up, it was growing warmer, and the three moons faded from view. They walked miles. Star Corn picked some strange roots and ate one raw. He offered one to Dorothy. A root the colour of honey and shaped like a heart with red stalks, nothing so much looked like that at home. She found it hard and spiced as a radish. Star Corn let her open her rucksack sometimes to sip from the bottle of water, and she shared this with him.

"Soon it will climb," Star Corn told her. His strong hand tightly around her wrist.

They soon left behind the yellow fields and came to green slopes, crowned with high silvery mountains veiled in fine mist. It was an easy walk to begin with, but further on the path snaked up a steep hill and curved around a massive rock wall. They travelled far, and the golden path turned brittle, leading them through mountains that soared to low clouds.

They soon arrived to a crossroads where three colourful paths intersected. The golden path contrinued ahead, curving upwards towards the mountains. There was a red path leading right down the hill and fading behind stone arches. A blue path snaked off further towards the left and disappearing around corners. Dorothy wondered where those paths led to.

"Come on," Star Corn urged. "We keep going on the yellow path."

Dorothy and Star Corn walked along the golden path. Totem wandered around behind them and caught up, carrying a dead bird in his jaws that he was going to eat.

They climbed up the golden path leading further up the mountains. Banners appeared here and there, all flapping in the soft breeze. Each flag showed a sigil of a green apple against blue.

"We must be in the outpost of the Fruit Mountain," Star Corn said. "An order of warriors."

Dorothy just wanted to go home. As she and Star Corn followed the golden path, they arrived to more dangerous heights. The path narrowed between walls, and sharply curved out alongside a steep wall. It was enough to make Dorothy feel sick. Totem remained close by.

"Your animal is very graceful," Star Corn commented as Totem just made it ahead of them and climbed steps leading up into a small orchard. A narrow path through trees of apples in shades of red and green. Some apples on the trees were speckled. Dorothy was tempted to pick one and she felt so hungry. As if to read her mind, Star Corn wanred her not to eat them. "They're poisonous" he said.

"Stop right there!" commanded a very angry voice above them. Leaning over a rock several feet up, was a knight dressed in pure steel armour, with a gleaming closed helmet on his head. He held a broadsword and a shield displaying the apple sigil of the Fruit Mountain.

The knight leapt down from the rock and landed in front of them. He was big, taller than Star Corn, and his armour reflected tiny sunlights. Dorothy was scared.

"I'm escorting this girl to the city where she can face trail for the death of a pincess Meng!" Star Corn blurted out. Dorothy was about to protest her innocence when the knight threatened to kill Star Corn if he didn't let her go. Star Corn released Dorothy then.

"Go back to the fields, farm boy!" the knight said. "I will take over from here."

Star Corn turned and started to go back, when Dorothy called out to him.

"Star Corn! Don't go! You've got my sword!"

"The sword doesn't belong to you!" he said as he walked away, leaving her.

The knight grabbed her by the arm and pulled her along the golden path, up through another orchard of poisonous apples. He was hot to the touch as the sunlight always glared on his armour.

"You're now in my charge," he said."I will take you to the city, for killing princess Meng!"

"I didn't kill her!" she cried. "Let me go!"

The knight flung her over his shoulder and carried her upwards while Star Corn descended the mountain, his job done. Now Dorothy was being arrested by a knight. Totem followed.

(End of Part 3. To be continued in Part 4).


	4. Chapter 4

Star Corn left Dorothy with a knight belonging to the order of the Fruit Mountain. He felt something burning against his waist, and he removed his belt that contained two swords, arrows and a dagger. There was no sign of flames. "Huh?" he muttered, finding nothing to cause the burning sensation. Star Corn Lifted his belt, ready to tie it around his waist. Then his hand touched the precious metallic sword and it scalded him. "Aargh!" he cried.

The sword was now aflame. He unrolled a blanket and beat it, to no effect. The sword burned a charred black outline in the yellow soil of the path, which stank. He covered the sword with dirt, only that intensified the flames instead of putting them out. A fire rose along the sword, growing tall, smouldering the foliage all around it. The heat coming off from the sword was repulsive and he screamed like thunder.

Dorothy was flung over the knight's back like a sack of oranges, when she saw Star Corn running up the yellow path. She called out to him. Star Corn's face was contorted and angry, and there were scalding burn marks on his hands. He used a cloth to hold the sword and flung it towards the knight's feet.

"Here's your bewitched sword, Dorothy!" he shouted.

The knight dropped Dorothy without care. He could charge towards Star Corn and punched him across the face.

"You're under arrest too, farm boy!" the knight growled. He pushed Star Corn, and tied his wrists behing his back with silvery rope. Dorothy was afraid. She picked up her sword, which felt cool as ice. The knight's armoured boot smacked down on the sword.

"You're not touching the royal sword, little girl!" said the knight. "You, get up. Put your hands behind your back!"

The knight pushed both Dorothy and Star Corn in front of him. Their hands were tied behind their backs with silvery ropes, and the knight kept the weapons belonging to Star Corn and Dorothy. He was going to take them into the city of Olympia where they would be sentenced to life in a dungeon beneath the sewars.

Night came, showing three splended moons and countless stars. The knight set up camp on the yellow path beside a mountain base, a shaded area protected from wind. He killed a mountain goat and built a small fire, to cook the meat whole including the skin. He took off his helmet and ate large chunks of the meat. He removed the ropes around their wrists but threatened them if they tried to escape. He threw scraps to Star Corn and Dorothy. Totem enjoyed chewing a bone. Dorothy plucked at wild red grass and nibbled on it.

"What's your name, sir?" Dorothy asked.

The knight was almost visible in the fire light. His hair was long and white. His skin so pale and his eyes sparkled like silver. Very broad shouldered, tall and with a handsome face, he seemed to be younger than she thought he would be.

"My name's Stannum", said the knight.

Dorothy smiled. "I'm Dorothy. This here is Star Corn. My wolf friend is Totem."

The knight spoke little after he'd eaten. He sat still, almost like a statue, with his own mighty sword across his lap, gazing at the fire dying down.

By morning the moons faded out. They walked miles through the mountains and came to another set of crossroads. A blue path, red path, green path, striped back and white path. The yellow path continued straight down into a valley with curious grey trees, grasses and cacti. That was where they went. Hours later they stopped for breakfast. Dorothy founf every item of food in her rucksack was eaten, so she nibbled on grass stalks and snails. Totem caught another bird. Star Corn and Stannum were clever at hunting out the rodents in the bushes.

As the yellow gold path dipped low into the lush valley, the rocks smoothed into terraces and broken marble pavements. Far ahead were white pillars, and rubble, houses, palaces. Skeletal remains of a city in faded colours of pink, indigo and beige. There were stone lions all over the ruined city, some overgrown, others destroyed and cracked.

Then a sound that made her blood cold raged from inside the city centre.

"Wait here!" Stannum ordered them. Totem snarled angrily and his fur was sticking up with fright. Dorothy was very nervous, looked around as if hoping to find anywhere to hide. Star Corn had all his weapons confiscated by Stannum, but he lifted some jagged rocks.

Soon, Stannum raced towards them in panic.

"Go! " he shouted.

Coming from one of the ruined palaces was a beast the colour of the sun. Dorothy looked at it to see the shape of an enormous lion, but it's head looked human! Star Corn grabbed her arm and yelled at her to hurry.

Dorothy just ran with them.

The sinister sound of footsteps gaining up on her terrified her, and she stumbled. The enormous sphynx like creature leapt across the ground and landed in front of Stannum.

(End of Part 4. To be continued in Part 5).


	5. Chapter 5

Dorothy screamed as the sphynx bared its enormous sharp teeth and bit hard onto Star Corn's left arm. Then with a fatal swipe, Stannum lunged his sword into the heart of the sphynx. The creature made a revolting sound as blood bubbled from it's mouth.

Star Corn clutched his arm in agony, and Dorothy ran to him. She removed her denim jacket then wrapped it around Star Corn's bleeding arm.

"It's dead!" Stannum called out, "so is my sword!"

The knight's steel sword broke as he tried to pull it free. Stannum shouted an expletive, and kicked the monster's body with his dusty boot. Dorothy fought back tears as she desperately tied her jacket around Star Corn's bleeding arm. Star Corn slumped to the floor cursing at the sphynx and this wretched ruin.

"A sphynx!" Stannum said, spitting at the carcass. "We can eat that! Enough to feed all of us for days until we get to Olympia."

Dorothy was upset. "Ugh! Are you kidding me?"

"You're new here, aren't you?" he asked. He removed his helmet. Dorothy saw the sweat on the man's face, clung to his white long hair, and redness near his eyes with faint scars from past battles. He looked young and battered by wars that Dorothy had never known.

"I don't know where I am," she replied."This isn't my home."

"Where do you come from?"

"Kansas. In America."

Both Stannum and Star Corn exchanged puzzled glances.

"You don't know where that is do you guys?" she asked sadly. She knew the answer was no.

"Why did you kill princess Meng?" Star Corn asked her.

"I didn't kill her," Dorothy said. "She was already dead when I got here."

"Then how did you get here?" Stannum asked.

"I don't know."

Totem the wolf sniffed Star Corn's arm, and licked the man's hand. In return, he ruffled Totem's fur.

"This animal is your friend, Dorothy?" Stannum observed.

"He's from my world," she answered.

A loud crash startled the growled. Stannum got up and unsheathed his second better sword. He'd thrown the broken sword away into the long grass. Coming from the ruins of the ancient city was a scarlet and golden robed hooded figure. Huge in size, at seven foot tall, carrying a golden staff bearing a blue sapphire. All three stood up.

"Who is that?" Dorothy asked.

"It's the king!" Star Corn said, holding his wounded arm with the jacket acting as a cast. "King Icarus!"

The hooded giant approached them and then sropped. Stannum sheathed his sword and got down on one knee.

"Your majesty," Stannum said.

Instantly Star Corn bent down on one knee and said "Your majesty" also.

Dorothy curtsied in the only way she knew how, as taught to her at the girls school, or when copying cartoon princesses and playing fairytale games with her friends.

"Your majesty," she said even though she had no idea who this royal was.

"Rise!" the hooded robed man sounded as loud as thunder. Everyone stood up.

The large man was taller than both Stannum and Star Corn. He used his free hand to remove the low hood and the red and gold velvet was a cloak of rich material. He removed this cloak and Dorothy gasped to see that the king was very handsome and powerfully built. He was suntanned golden, and his eyes were like amber stones. His beautiful golden hair was cascading down his back. He wore gold chainmail and there was a massive sword in a golden helm at his golden belt.

"You each deserve to be honoured for killing the foul monster," said the king. "I've been hunting it for a long time. Alas it escaped."

Dorothy wondered if the sphynx might've been scared of the king due to his size, as she was feeling a bit scared of him now.

"There deserves to be a ceromony about this. I will take you all back to Olympia and demand an investiture to give credit to your names there. You will each be rewarded," the king said.

Stannum and Star Corn were overcome with excitement. Dorothy was quiet as she just wanted to go home. She watched Totem chewing a small dead striped monkey that it must've caught here. There was no way that Totem could ever be her pet.

"What is your name and rank, soldier," the king addressed Stannum.

"Captain Stannum of the Fruit Mountain order."

"A knight and a monk, how interesting," the king replied with a grin, showing beautiful bejemmed teeth full of tiny rubies, sapphires, emeralds, topaz and diamonds! The king went over to Star Corn, who stumbled his words and looked down at the floor.

"I am Star Corn of the yellow fields, son of the wheat master Star Oats."

The king laughed and patted Star Corn across the back.

Then the king moved across to Dorothy and looked down at her.

"And tell me about you, little girl," the king said.

Dorothy was afraid. "I'm Dorothy Storm, from Kansas."

The king smelled of the wildnerness and strong oils, wood, beasts and terrible things. His face was handsome and he looked like a man of thirty years of age. His long hair sparkled as it moved in the breeze.

"Are you a witch, Dorothy girl?" king Icarus asked.

"No, your highness," she replied. "I'm just a girl who wants to go home."

The journey along the path took three more days. She was used to all three of these strange men by now. Star Corn. Stannum the knight. The king. And Totem was never far away. He hunted and brought her scraps. She found whatever she could eat but nothing with human heads. From bits of dead animal that came from Totem's hunt, meat-on-bones the men prepared over uncivilised fires. Wild uncooked raw vegetation, as well as bugs, worms, snails and grass.

Eventually the yellow golden path turned a corner, round a green slope and an impressive city caked near a forest. Giant structures of marble in shades of chocolate, red, pink, jade and , pyramids and towers made of onyx. Enormous statues of humans and animals.

"Here is the city of Olympia!" King Icarus shouted. Stannum and Star Corn cheered.


	6. Chapter 6

The city was called Olympia and it's king was the magnificent Icarus. Golden Icarus, and well loved by all the citizens of Olympia.

The city was nothing like Dorothy had seen before. The architecture was very strange, but also every window, corner, drain, door, manhole, gutter, pipe, column, rooftop, displayed colourful charms. There were poppies in every square inch of the marble pyramids and villas.

She noticed that all of the people in Olympia were young, fresh faced, healthy, gorgeous. Not one elderly person. There were girls in white dresses dancing like ballerinas in mid air. Groomed animals dressed in poppies. Handsome men played harps. There were bowls of fruit everywhere that people could help themselves to. All the people smiled perfectly white glittering teeth.

"This is my beloved city," said king Icarus. "You'll be my honoured guests."

Icarus showed them through the city to the palace covered in gold lattice walls. Dorothy, Star Corn and Stannum were shown into a dining hall with a huge welcome feast. Dorothy felt hungry, but something about this didn't seem right. Everything was too perfect.

The courtiers were pretty airy people in white gowns, drapes, flowers in their hair. Men played harps. Women danced. Children laughed gently. They giggled and Dorothy overheard whispering voices talking about her and the others. The voices said:

"Soldier monk, hee hee." "Farmer, hee hee." "Weird girl and wolf, hee hee." "Girl is a barbarian, hee hee!"

Dorothy ignored them. The stares, grins, the pretty men and women making fun.

At the feats, Star Corn and Stannum scoffed themselves. Totem was being a wolf and enjoyed his treats on a bone. Dorothy ate some bread and it dissolved like water, without any flavour. This was all an illusion.

Star Corn and Stannum were easily hypnotised by all of the glamour. Dorothy didn't like the way everyone was smiling. She felt uneasy.

"Dorothy," Icarus said. "You've barely eaten."

"I'm not feeling very hungry," she said.

"This food is the best in the world!"

"I just want to go home," she replied. That golden path led her to Olympia. So where was Kansas? It wasn't here. Helen told her to go home following that path. She did and her life was in danger.

"You need to follow the red path from Olympia to get home," said the cool voiced king.

"Now I follow the red path? Is this a joke?" Dorothy was feeling sick now and slammed her hand on the table, making bowls of fruit jump. She got up and her face flushed with beetroot rage.

"Sit down, girl!" Stannum ordered. "You're in the presense of the king!"

"Excuse me your highness, but I have to leave," she said.

Icarus stood and laughed. His laughter was like thunder.

"Girl!" he started."You can't just leave 're under arrest and have yet to face trail for the death of princess Meng. You stole her sword and killed the straw spirit. Your pet wolf killed a number of our native animal species."

Star Corn looked at her with a mouthful of food. Stannum stared at her with cold eyes. The king looked menacing, huge and angry with his long golden mane and fiery eyes.

"Your highness," she protested."It's not what happened. I came here by accident, a tornado, the woman was dead. Helen gave me the sword, the monster in the field tried to kill me, Star Corn..."

"ENOUGH!" The king roared.

The king demanded a trial by nightfall. Dorothy was taken by two guards wearing golden chainmail and she was placed in a small white cell with a tiny round window, facing a green jade disk on a wall with a motif of a gold lion. She was left there for hours. Dorothy cried and called for her aunt Emerald.


	7. Chapter 7

There was a wet sensation on her hand. At first she couldn't see what was making her hand wet. Then realised that it had grown dark, and darker than she noticed it was. The wolf Totem's wet nose touched her hand.

"Hello, boy!" Dorothy was pleased to see her wolf friend.

The jade disk opposite on the wall seemed pushed her fingers through the bars and managed to touch the jade disk, with her hand snapping the fine bars. It was very strange but the bars were like twigs. The disk had come away into her hand and felt soft and it was only a leaf. The cell was made of grass and spider weeds. The ceiling had gone and the open sky was full of stars. Three moons shone. The cell's little room was an outdoor space.

Startled, she gazed all around her. Totem sat beside her all the time.

Star Corn, Stannum and Icarus were sprawled across the floor in deep sleep, and all three of the men snored heavily. A soft breeze covered them in petals.

The city was empty. The moons shone enough light for her to see that the city was a beautiful ruined city overgrown with poppies. The people were gone. The animals gone. Food and music gone. She stood up. So it had all been just an hallucination, even the sights, sounds, smells, dancers, harpists, children, animals, guards, the feast.

"Hey! Guys! Wake up!" Dorothy shouted. Alarmed and creeped out, she wanted to get out of here. The place was haunted.

Slowly the three men woke up dazed. King Icarus stood up yawning loud. He remembered the events of yesterday and how he acted like the king. He sighed with embarassment.

Star Corn was revolted that his mouth was full of weeds and dirt. He spat the muck out. Stannum was cold and shivvering at the idea he was duped by all the make-believe.

"What was going on here yesterday?" Star Corn asked. "You were the king Icarus!"

Icarus slumped down on his enormous behind and growled.

"Yes I was!" Icarus said. "The poppies made me king of my city. This has always been my city. I've been ruler of Olympia ever since I was a boy. My father didn't like me coming out here alone. I knew the poppies made the ghosts appear."

Star Corn swore and went away.

"So it was a lie?" Dorothy asked. "We all hallucinated it?"

"Yes and no," Icarus replied. "The poppies grow here and allow the spirits of the lost city to show themselves. What you witnessed was Olympia a thousand years ago. Except I'm king here, because I'm alive and have been playing here alone for my entire life."

Star Corn shouted, "You're very sad! Get a life, big man!"

Stannum laughed.

"Icarus," Dorothy wasn't amused but felt sorry for Icarus. "Are you saying that all those people were ghosts? And you've been living here since you were a kid?"

"Yes," Icarus responded sadly. "I was a lonely boy. The spirits made me feel powerful."

Coward!" Stannum shouted."You had us fooled! I'm a knight of the Fruit Mountain and by my authority I'm arresting you for deceit and..." he looked at Dorothy."Conspiracy to murder!"

Dorothy remembered. "You wanted to execute me, didn't you?"

Icarus growled but in sadness. "No," he said. "of course not, little girl."

Dorothy, Star Corn and Stannum were very annoyed with Icarus for lying about being a king in a dead city, populated by ghosts. Stannum had Icarus, Dorothy and Star Corn were all under his arrest. He confiscated Icarus's sword now.

"We march along the red path to the West. Hurry up!" Stannum ordered.

The golden path ended at Olympia. Three other paths left it the other side, a blue one headed north, green south, and a red one towards the West.

Dorothy felt overcome by sadness. Nothing was at Olympia except a ruin and everyone she saw had looked real but were spirits of the ancient city. And her journey ended there as the golden path stopped here. There was no Kansas. Helen lied to her.

Other roads started at Olympia. The red path made of red foliage turned blood colour by the morning dew. They walked for miles, and the land became a desert with tall natural structures covered in luminous desert flowers. Cactus everywhere. The party stopped to eat some of the wild vegetation, Stannum caught a bird. Star Corn built a small fire and was able to gather some recourses to make a cooking stove out of rocks and grass. Icarus brooded as a fallen king, if ever he really was one.

Totem caught a little marsupial type of creature with stripes. Dorothy chewed on sweet roots plucked from the orange dirt. There was a perfectly round cactus in front of her that she hadn't noticed before. It's massive spikes were closer to her than she realised. It was odd. She knew she would never have sat so near a cactus like that. Dorothy moved away.

Then as she was feeding, the round cactus appeared beside her. This time it wasn't fun. The cactus opened two enormous eyeballs and exposed a gaping mouth filled with razor sharp teeth. "Look out!"

The men got up and were surrounded by many ferocious cacti with faces. Stannum (the one loaded with weapons) unsheathed his own sword and brought it down. With a squelch, the cactus was chopped.

"There's another one!" Star Corn shrieked and two more cactuses with faces appeared. Stannum cut them with his sword. The whole thing started all over again and Stannum sliced the cactus heads until more appeared and he cut those down. Star Corn and Icarus wanted to join in. Stannum returned their weapons.

"Give my sword back too!" Dorothy called out to him.

"No Dorothy! It's the property of princess Meng!" Stannum told her as he chopped the cactus villains. Star Corn and Icarus were lopping away at many more cactus fiends and no matter how many they cut, more appeared.

It was getting tiresome. The men had been at it for ages, and the cactus monsters were always appearing in vast numbers. Totem was nervous and he was afraid of the spikes.

"Give me my sword, Stannum!" Dorothy shouted.

Stannum ignored her, but she went to him and pulled the sword from his belt. He was too busy chopping cactus to stop her. She held the sword up in the air and the sun flashed across the precious metallic blade. Before she plunged it into a cactus face, the sword turned into a bright blue light and sent a shockwave all around. The shockwave mashed the cactus monsters into pulp. None of them returned and no more cactus faces appeared.

"The sword did it!" Star Corn said.

"No I did it!" Dorothy said, feeling hurt that whatever she did was unnoticed.

"Give it to me now!" Stannum demanded and pulled it from Dorothy's hand. "You're still under arrest! All of you are! We shall press on and no funny business!"

(End of Part 7. To be continued in Part 8).


	8. Chapter 8

Dry orange desert with hot spiral shaped mountains. Dorothy and her less-than-friendly companions walked for days, feeding on cactus and lizards. Totem disliked the basking sunny alien desert and he was often resting, subdued by the sun.

"Totem, keep going," Dorothy encouraged her wolf friend. "You'll be fine when it's sundown."

Nights were better for him. The group agreed to sleep during the daytime and press on at night when it was cooler and easier to breath. Night was more beautiful in the desert and it looked enchanting. Three moons threw down colours upon the red and orange sands, cactus flowers and red weeds. Luminous insects and reptiles came out to sip on dew.

The red path soon arrived to a woodier place. There were white baobab trees looking like fat dragons and elephants. More tufts of green, red and yellow grasses. Pools of fresh drinking water.

"Olympia!" shouted the men.

"How can it be Olympia?" Dorothy quizzed at the structures, asking them.

"This is another Olympia," Star Corn replied. "There are hundreds of Olympia cities."

"The last one turned out to be dead," Stannum chipped in but grinning. He was glad to be near any city of Olympia. "And I forgive the sad king."

They walked on and came to a place with marble statues of monkeys. There were stone monkeys at the bases of trees. Stone monkeys perched along steps and on paving. It was clear this was a marble city full of monkey statues. There were fig trees and grape vines, fountains, herbs gardens, more stone monkeys.

The group walked along the red path until it came to the bottom of a marble staircase leading up to a white door on a red castle. The castle was buttressed by green fruit trees and monkey men walked up the steps. Dorothy didn't want to stick around alone outside with Totem so she followed the others. Totem also followed Dorothy and he'd just eaten a green lizard whole.

"Totem I wonder if we can go home soon," Dorothy said as she climbed the steps.

She hoped so. The yellow path led to a ghost town so by that logic could the red path lead to home?

Icarus was first to reach the door. He put his hand to the door handle, when all of a sudden, a massive gong sounded. It sent a sound wave across the desert, making the floor vibrate. A stone monkey near the door of the castle came into power. It's eyes lit up and it bellowed an electric voice.

"STOP RIGHT THERE"

Everyone stopped anyway but the massive voice and the reaction of the stone monkey frightened Dorothy and Totem. Icarus bowed to the stone monkey and asked for entry.

"PASSWORD" It said. As loud as a jet with sonic boom.

Icarus didn't understand the stone monkey. He looked at the others. Star Corn shook his head. Stannum was puzzled. Dorothy felt scared, but wondered what it meant.

"What password?" Icarus asked.

"I don't know!" Stannum said in panic.

"If we don't have a password, we're all going to die!" Star Corn cried.

"This has to be another illusion," Dorothy realised. "Like at the other city. It was full of poppies giving out hallucinations. This city is full of stone monkeys."

"So you think we're imagining this?" Icarus asked, the others agreed with him.

"Not really but..." Dorothy learned not to trust this world. "...what if the stone monkey is a machine."

Icarus tested Dorothy's theory and tried to open the door. It wouldn't open. He looked at the stone monkey, feeling humbled. "Stone monkey, I don't have a password."

Dorothy ran up the steps and tried to push the door, and then pull it, and even slide it. To her, the stone monkey was a prop. It had to be nothing. She looked at the king and the others. Again all three men had the same hypnotised look on their faces as they had in the last city. They were easily influenced by other forces of this strange world. Easily powered. Easily controlled.

She looked at the door to find that it was just painted there. It wasn't even a real door! They've been had. She told them and they saw it, and groaned.

"There has to be another way in, guys!" she said. The three men all sat down and dozed off.

"Thanks. I'll go and look on my own then!"

The wolf and Dorothy ran down the stone steps.

(End of Part 8. To be continued in Part 9).


	9. Chapter 9

The sun was setting and the bright candy coloured stars were flickering in the sky. Three moons gradually appeared in view, massive spheres in the sky. Dorothy looked for a door but couldn't find anything, just steps leading to walls. She found one of the desert gardens of fountains, fruit trees and coffee bean shrubs contained curious monkeys made of onyx. Their eye balls were true wild flowers.

She looked at Totem, who had found something to chew.

"I guess this is an illusion," she sighed. "Another might just press on, maybe forget about it."

"NOT A RUIN" spoke an electric sound coming from one of the onyx monkey figures.

"Did you speak?" she asked.

The small black statuette was unmoving. It had purple and pink pansies for eyes. Whoever carved these monkeys did an excellent job at planting flower seeds into their eye sockets.

"PASSWORD" it said.

"Oh no, not again. I don't have a password," she turned and was about to leave, when the monkey answered her.

"KING DOES KNOW PASSWORD," it replied.

"He doesn't know... he asked..."

"KING OF OLYMPIA KNOWS PASSWORD."

"He's not a king of Olympia," she laughed. "He fooled you toys as well?"

"KING ICARUS OF OLYMPIA GOLD PATH CITY."

"No! Monkey doll, king Icarus lied about that! The city of Olympia is empty."

"OLYMPIA IS POPULATED WITH THOUSANDS, RULER IS KING ICARUS."

Dorothy was confused. This onyx monkey was playing games with her head.

"Look, the city was empty when I woke up..."

"CITY NEVER EMPTY."

Totem howled after discovering bones that belonged to a bison. Bisons don't like deserts.

"THIS IS THE DWELLING OF PRINCESS NYX AND YOU FACE TRIAL."

Dorothy had enough. She didn't care about entering the door. She wanted to wake the men up and gather some fruit and water, then resume the treck on the path.

She couldn't find them. Star Corn, Stannum and Icarus had gone.

Dorothy was overcome by fatigue, and confusion. She picked herself up off the floor and noticed something in her hand. It was a leaf, a bright green lush leaf not found in the desert. The air cooled and a shadow comforted her from the heat. Opposite her was a round window, and outside that was a jade disk. A maiden with flowers in her hair splashed a bucket of water over this jade disk. The jade disk sounded a gong. A beautiful woman in black crystals appeared from the disk and walked out of view.

""Where am I? Dorothy was inside a white marble cell room, with Totem asleep beside her.

"What the!" Startled, she got up and took in her bearings. All around her were white marble walls and a couple of round windows. A rounded ceiling with a domed light. An arched door, and some bowls of uneaten fruit. She was back in the city of Olympia, and in the cell where the guards put her!

Dorothy sat down and cried.

"Aunt Emerald!"

The cell door opened. A guard entered, and stepped aside to let in the woman in sparkling black crustals. Her gown was long and made of black shining gems and black diamonds and black quartz. Her hair was a deep indigo and full of glitter. Her eyes were colours of starry blue, green and red. Her complexion was dark plum. She was the most beautiful lady that Dorothy had seen.

"Good morning, Dorothy Storm," the lady said. "I'm Nyx, the princess of the South. Come with me."

Dorothy had little choice. She went outside the cell with the lady. And they left the marble prison, and its flowery white walls, to find flowering palaces and a city filled with beautiful people playing harps and singing. They were alive, whatever they were.

"Where am I?" Dorothy asked.

Nyx smiled at her. "Olympia."

"But we left Olympia, a long time ago. We crossed a desert and came to a ruin with stone monkeys."

"That was no ruin, it's my house!" Nyx laughed. "I woke you up from a long deep sleep. You were unconsious for days, so I was called upon to attend your trial ending."

"What do you mean?"

"It was decided by everyone at the councel that you are innocent. You didn't murder princess Meng. She was killed before you arrived here on our world."

"But the ruin... we woke up and it was empty. Icarus said he's played here..."

"Icarus did play in the ruin with the sphynx. This one is a real city with real people. You dreamt everything else. Icarus is worried about you, so are your other friends Stannum and Star Corn."

Dorothy was more confused now. Everything in the desert had been a dream, according to Nyx. She was so pleased it had been a dream. She encountered so much and all was a fabrication.

Later after she was given fruit and bread, she was reunited with Icarus, Star Corn and Stannum. Totem ran around chasing his of lovely people dressed in white made her feel special. Star Corn gave her a kiss on the lips. Stannum kissed her lips. Then Icarus kissed her hand. They put flowers around her, and she wallowed in joy.

"Dorothy. Dorothy! DOROTHY!" All stopped.

She opened her eyes. Dorothy saw Stannum looking at her, Star Corn and Icarus trying to break a door between two onyx monkeys.

She sat up. "What? Where am I?"

Stannum sighed. "We found you here, passed out," he said.

Icarus looked at her. "I had to give you the kiss of life. You must've been suffering from heat stroke."

Dorothy got up and looked all around her. She wasn't in Olympia. She was here, in the desert with stone monkeys and locked doors, with electric voices demanding passwords to let them in. She was annoyed, and kicked one of the monkey statuettes hard, so it fell and broke.

This made the door open. Inside there were shining black onyx stones and crystals. The dwelling of Nyx. Princess of the night. As the poppies in Olympia made her and the others hallucinate, the monkeys had also done that here.


	10. Chapter 10

The castle was locked. Dorothy and her companions left and travelled further along the red path. They spent days walking, under three moonlights, and camped under shades of trees and rocks in the day. Icarus commanded them to keep going. Stannum used his skills to hunt, trap, make fires and cut wood. Star Corn was good at cooking over a rough fire using nothing except the foliage all around, but there was another amazing skill he had: he could summon the rain.

Dorothy grew fond of each man. She found all three of them handsome in his own unique way. Icarus was powerful, muscular and with tumbling golden hair. Icarus shaved his bushy beard off and looked much younger and more handsome. Dorothy loved his golden mane. Stannum was laid back, although quick and sharp eyed. He could see for miles. She loved his eyes. Star Corn was clever and had the knowledge of the land. She loved his laughter.

Each night, Dorothy found herself drawn to one man in particular: Star Corn one night. Stannum another night. Icarus another. Icarus was authoritive but at the same time he was gentle with her. Stannum was a soldier and a knight. Yet he was romantic also. Star Corn was wild but sweet natured.

Dorothy was overcome by fatigue and sickness. She missed her aunt Emerald, but soon did not miss Kansas very much. The new world was her home, whatever and whereever this place is.

"What do you call this land? Is it earth?" she asked while thy ate meat from a bone.

"This is the land of the red path," Star Corn said, which she knew.

"It's inner land between Olympia." Stannum replied, being confusing as ever.

"We're in Olympus, Dorothy." Icarus said. "You might call it something else. Nod land. Fairyland. But this has always been Olympus. It's a continent."

"Atlantis or Olympus?" she asked.

"Olympus," Stannum replied.

"Atlantis was destroyed," answered Icarus.

She'd heard of Olympus, the dwelling of gods, heroic people and magical beings. Thi place never featured on the maps. It was never mentioned at school. Her teachers said Olympus didn't exist.

She had tons of questions. It poured out from her heart and her mouth, and she noticed that she could talk to these men now. Before, long ago, she didn't trust any of them. Being with each man closely made her feel trusting of them. They were her protectors and not her jailors. They made sure she was never harmed by anything. When she passed out in the sweltering heat, they cared for her.

They soon arrived to a beautiful oasis nirvana with orchards, apples of red, green, gold and blue colours. Pretty women in flowing white dresses were everywhere carrying baskets of fruits, plants, stalks, weeds, vegetables, flowers, mushrooms, shells, nuts, beans, rice and sticks. There were palaces of pastel pink and blue shades riding from the luscious green woods. Behind the forested city was a green hill with a tumbling waterfall, spraying foam and rainbows.

"This must be Olympia red?" Icarus said but he wasn't sure.

"No, Icarus. Olympia red was back there with all the monkey statues," Star Corn reminded him.

"This is Olympia green!" Stannum told them all. "It says there!"

He pointed at a shining green rock with golden letters:

Ολυμπία πράσινος

Translated as "Olympia Green".

A woman in a green, white and pink gown of sparkling gems appeared on top of the white veined steps. Her hair was a soft caramel colour with tiny green gemstones. Her skin was brown. Her eyes were green.

"Hello and welcome to Olympia Green," she smiled sweetly. "I'm the witch of the East. My name is princess Calliope. You will find fresh cold drinks and food inside the villa if you want of you deserve a rest. The beautiful wolf can come love animals here."

The place was beautiful and friendly. No one made fun of her here. It was full of gorgeous women and men, not just playing musical instruments. They worked also, making things, cutting wood, sawing, hammering, smithing, grooming horses and feeding countless birds and animals.

Everyone seemed too busy to wonder about her and her friends.

She told princess Calliope about her journey and how she wanted to see her aunt again.

"I have the thing for you," Callioppe went over to one of the pretty girls, spoke to her, and the girl fluttered up the stairs like a fairy. In moments she returned with a velvet pink cushion with tassels. She gave the cushion to Calliope. Calliope put the cushion in front of Dorothy. On top of the cushion was a pair of fantastic looking shoes, covered in jewels and flowers.

"Put these shoes on, and they'll help you," Calliope said.

Dorothy pulled off her boots and realised how her feet hurt so much. Then she slipped on the new shoes and they felt soft and comfortable. Her head spun. Her vision wobbled. It felt like being on an airplane. She grabbed onto something to stop herself falling. The men (Icarus, Star Corn and Stannum) helped her on a chair and gave her some drink.

"She's passing out and it's time that she's transported home by the crystal shoes," Calliope said.

"But we've not had a chance to say goodbye to her!" Star Corn said and the others agreed.

Their voices trailed off, and Dorothy opened her eyes to see a round window with a jade disk. The round window was a bcycle wheel, turning and turning in the breeze. The jade disk was a green frisbee, that got stuck in the wheel. Dorothy sat up. She looked around her, and found just emptiness. No palace. No Calliope or her friends. Everyone was gone. Totem was gone. She saw the rubble of houses that was once her old neighbourhood. There had been another tornado and she arrived here, strangely enough just as the tornado went away.

There were upturned cars and trucks. A plane whizzed by. It was kansas.

She was home. But a part of her was sad. She made herself another home somewhere else. She was barefooted and missing time.

"There she is! Dorothy!" cried aunt Emerald and others who were looking for her.

Dorothy had been missing for weeks. She vanished when the tornado hit the town, and weeks later another tornado hit the same town but this time Dorothy was returned. It had to have all been a dream. Was it?

A trip to the doctors a month later confirmed that what happeend to her wasn't a dream. It was real. She'd spent weeks in Olympia. She touched her belly and hoped for the future,wishing that no one would be horrible. Aunt Emerald was a great person and Uncle Henry will be returning home soon. They wouldn't frown upon her for getting with child with a man not identified in this world. She wondered who her unborn child's father was out of her three mysterious handsome friends. Was it Icarus the king? Stannum the knight? Star Corn of the land? Would she ever see them again?

A rainbow formed in the sky. It answered her question because the colour green of the rainbow was strongest colour of all. It was the way the three men could say hello to her from Olympus.

The End


End file.
